Oscar Best Song Medley Looks Like Putumayo CD Cover

We understand the producers were under some pressure, what with two-thirds of the famous people nominated for the Best Song Oscar refusing to show up due to new motherhood or longtime Peter Gabriel-hood, but did the Best Song medley seem a little bit desperate? We're glad A.R. Rahman was there to sing his two songs and give surprisingly boring acceptance speeches. And we guess all those dancers in saris made sense. But then, also, there were a bunch of Japanese taiko drummers, for no apparent reason. And the Soweto Gospel Choir, to sing along to "Down to Earth," from WALL-E. And ... was that the USC Marching Band, L.A.'s newest awards-show stars?

Also, John Legend? We'd be hard-pressed to think of a singer whose voice and style were less like Peter Gabriel's, although we suppose they could have asked Ghostface or Big & Rich. Actually, a Big, Ghostface, and Rich trio would have been better than this. And then, after all that, they gave M.I.A. the shaftagain! Video of the multicultural musical train wreck after the jump.

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